John Eric Jones

Military

This memory is submitted on behalf of my father, then 2d Lt. John Eric Jones of the 379th Bomb Group, USAAF, based at Kimbolton (not far from Duxford and the site of the AAM). The first photo is of the “Sara Jane” that my father crash-landed (as co-pilot) in Nijelamer, Holland on May 7, 1944. A Dutch researcher (Teunis Schuermann) contacted my brother and I two years ago to reveal that this and other photos had been kept secretly by the Dutch photographic shop that developed them for the German military in 1944. He discovered the photos in a museum collection while researching the history of the plane and the monument that now marks its crash site. He contacted us seeking further information about the Sara Jane’s crew members for a website he created.



There’s a fascinating story behind the photograph. On their 19th mission over Berlin, the Sara Jane’s crew took flak but managed to struggle westward for several hundred miles on two engines. Over Holland, four of the crew bailed out, but the other five stayed with the plane through the crash landing. The four who parachuted contacted the underground and successfully evaded capture until Holland was liberated. The Germans captured the other five (including my father) and sent them to a POW camp, where they sat out the remainder of the war and experienced the privations of captivity and the long march from Stalag Luft III to Moosberg in 1945. I’ve known the Sara Jane’s story for some time, but never thought I would see this photo or this monument to the Dutch people, Allied airmen, and a day my father (1921-1983) never forgot.



Shot down 7 May 1944 in B-17 #42-38161, Prisoner of War (POW).

Connections

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Units served with

The insignia of the 379th Bomb Group.
  • Unit Hierarchy: Group
  • Air Force: Eighth Air Force
  • Type Category: Bombardment

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Sara Jane
  • Unit: 100th Bomb Group 379th Bomb Group 525th Bomb Squadron

Places

Line up of P-47 Thunderbolts of the 82nd Fighter Squadron, 78th Fighter Group, at Duxford air base. September 1944. Printed caption on reverse of print: '55432 AC - War Birds Home To Rest - Republic P-47 Thunderbolts lined up on an 8th Air Force field in England after a daylight sweep over Germany. Crews have finished inspections and refueling.'
  • Site type: Airfield
  • Known as: "Duckpond"
  • Site type: Prisoner of war camp
  • Known as: Stalag Luft III, Sagan, Germany

Events

Event Location Date Description

Other

Prisoner of War (POW)

Zagan, Poland 7 May 1944 Stalag Luft 3 Sagan-Silesia Bavaria (Moved to Nuremberg-Langwasser) 49-11

Born

Muncey, Indiana, USA

Died

Revisions

Date
Contributorjmoore43
Changes
Sources

Added POW Camp info to the POW event and a S/N from WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Added an association to Stalag Luft 3 per WW2 POW records at the National Archives (NARA).
Added a "-" to the A/C tail # in the "Summary biography" to aid clarity & consistency.

Date
Contributorcfinney
Changes
Sources

Name appears in Parker Finney's POW Diary 1944 - 1945 Stalag III Sagan Germany and Stamlager VIIA Moosberg Germany

Date
ContributorEmily
Changes
Sources

Associated media

Date
ContributorEmily
Changes
Sources

Son, Rob Jones, Via AAM Memory Bank

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Drawn from the records of the National Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force, Savannah, Georgia / MACR 4559 / MACR 4559; 379th Bombardment Group Anthology, pg 303 / Paul Andrews, Project Bits and Pieces, 8th Air Force Roll of Honor database